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| Sediment cores
from Long Island Sound have been analyzed for metal contaminants, physical
properties, and sedimentation patterns. Current work includes mapping the
amount of these contaminants buried in the sediments, identifying past events
(e.g., storms, changes in industries) that influenced contaminant inputs,
and modeling sediment movement. A goal is to predict the future location
of these ‘legacy contaminants’ and use this understanding to minimize
their negative impacts on the marine system. This work is part of the
US Geological Survey Regional Pollution Project: "Long Island Sound
Environmental Studies." |
| Bottom sediments
in Long Island Sound have accumulated many types of pollutants, including
metals and organic compounds of pesticide, industrial, and petroleum derivation.
Much analytical and descriptive data has been obtained on these sediments
over the past decades yet these published and unpublished data have not
been compiled into forms suitable for a variety of users. The Long Island
Sound component of the Contaminated Sediments Database will provide a compilation
and synthesis of existing data to help establish the environmental status
of our coastal sediments, how it has changed over time, and the transport
paths of contaminants in this region. This work is part of the US Geological
Survey Regional Pollution Project: "Long Island Sound Environmental
Studies," and it involves collaborators from many institutions. |
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Building on an ongoing study, this project aims
to development a detailed timeline of environmental changes in Long Island
Sound over the last decades by evaluating sediment cores. The study will
assist in the development of a holistic framework of environmental changes
in the Sound. Evaluation of sediment will provide information on water
temperatures, organisms within the food chain, dissolved oxygen levels,
pollution, and salinity. The information derived from this study will
assist in knowing whether the lobster die-off is more strongly linked
to global climate change or to local contamination with pollutants or
nutrients. A collaborative research project by scientists from the
USGS, Wesleyan University (CT), the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth,
and Bryn Athyn College (PA). Funded by the Connecticut State Department
of Environmental Protection’s Lobster Research Initiative.
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Samples from sediment cores which have ages assigned
to specific depth intervals can be analyzed for a variety of chemical,
physical and biological parameters. USGS samples from which the contaminant
and age data are available and being used to reconstruct the paleoenvironmental
history of Long Island Sound through faunal, chemical and isotopic studies.
Questions addressed include: Did anoxia/hypoxia exist prior to industrialization
and population increase? How have water temperature, turbidity and salinity
changed over the past four centuries? Can natural fluctuations in environmental
indicators be separated from anthropogenic effects? A collaborative
research project by scientists from the USGS and Wesleyan University.
Funded by the Environmental Protection Agency and Connecticut Sea Grant.
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| USGS scientists assist
environmental managers and the public to better understand how geologic
processes affect the distribution and fate of contaminants in the Sound.
Knowledge of the history of contaminant build-up in the region and how sediments
are transported within the ecosystem helps to identify improvements in the
health of the Sound, to guide monitoring, and to predict future conditions.
See Sound Health 2001: Status and Trends in the Health of Long Island
Sound online at http://www.epa.gov/NE/eco/lis/index.html
See Environmental Studies Based on Long Island
Sound Sediment online at http://ethomas.web.wesleyan.edu/lisweb/hypox_LIS.htm.
This is a presentation at the NOAA/EPA sponsored Long Island Sound Study
Workshop: From hypoxia-based to ecosystem-based monitoring (March 2002).
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U.S. Department of the Interior |
U.S. Geological Survey